UNDER THE WISHING STAR

Author: Diane Farr ISBN: 0451210239 9/2003 HISTORICAL Publisher: SIGNET
Time Period: Regency - 1803

Malcolm Chase's fortunate chance encounter with a kind young neighbor, Natalie Whittaker, gives the recent widower reason to fire his daughter's cruel governess and hire Natalie instead. With her household duties usurped by her brother's new wife, Natalie longs to accept Malcolm's offer. But it would be unseemly for a woman of her station to move into a bachelor's household. Though the obvious solution is to marry, Natalie desires a union of love, not convenience--a wish that just might come true when fate gives her feminine wiles a fighting chance…

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

I first read Diane Farr last year, when I stumbled upon her books THE DUEL OF HEARTS and FORTUNE HUNTER. I loved her prose, her wit, her dialogue, her characters, her storylines - everything her pen touched seemed to flow smooth as silk. Without question, both books were keeper status and I quickly added her to my autobuy list. Now that her newest release has been delivered to my door, I've discovered Ms. Farr has given me another touching and sweet love story.

UNDER THE WISHING STAR isn't as tightly woven or as spellbinding as her first and second books, but perhaps that's because it is a more character-driven story. We watch Malcolm, a widower, struggle with the guilt of his first wife's death and the trials of being a good parent, while Natalie, the other main character, tries at age twenty-five to gain independence from her stepbrother and find a sense of self-worth and identity without resorting to a marriage of convenience. There's also Sarah, the child, who's slightly askew and a wee bit odd, but who comes across as genuine and loving. Her personality and relationships with the grownups around her are right-on-the-spot, and she appears just enough to compliment, rather than overshadow the leads within the confines of the story.

There was a downside to this story for me, however. There was too much drawn-out "does she/he" or "doesn't she/he love me" conflict when it came to the main characters' interaction with each other. Even with Ms. Farr's very adept penning skills, that flowing silk began to develop a few snags and I soon found myself trickling down to the finish. However, with plenty of well-drawn secondary characters and the excellent dialogue that takes place between Malcolm and Natalie (Ms. Farr really excels in that area), I was able to overlook the slackening pace.

All in all, UNDER THE WISHING STARS merits a 4 Rose Read from me. While you might not be whizzing through those pages as fast as you did with her previous two releases, Ms. Farr still spins an enjoyable and poignant story well worth reading.

Nancy Davis